1 year of Garuda Gamana Vrishabha Vahana: 1 year since Raj B Shetty unleashed the demon in him

Exactly a year ago, Raj B Shetty released his second directorial, Garuda Gamana Vrishabha Vahana, hailed today as one of the best gangster films in Indian cinema. Raj, whose claim to fame until then was his debut directorial Ondu Motteya Kathe and a few other acting gigs, turned the spotlight on him and his co-star Rishab Shetty in a film that had everyone singing praise of his direction, including the craft and finesse of filmmaking and storytelling and his portrayal of the man of violence, Shiva.

The film, which Raj had co-produced with some of his mates, was presented by actor-filmmaker Rakshit Shetty, through his banner, Paramvah Studios. Ahead of the trailer launch, Rakshit had tweeted about this association, writing, “A film that is truly a masterpiece. A film which pulled me into its depths and soaked me in its world; by the time I realised how much it had affected me, two days had passed. After the announcement, this film will be mine, and probably, it won’t be right to post this later. But you will get to witness some of the finest performances and beautiful story-telling that has been packed in an epic.”

Read also: Garuda Gamana Vrishabha Vahana is a Paramvah presentation, but it’s still my film: Raj B Shetty

GGVV review: Garuda Gamana Vrishabha Vahana review: Raj B Shetty is the soul of this gangster flick and Rishab, its heart

Garuda Gamana Vrishabha Vahana (GGVV) was a tale of two friends from Mangaladevi in Mangaluru, who go from being small-time thugs to dreaded gangsters, with Raj’s Shiva the muscle, and Rishab’s Hari the brain. How a policeman then succeeds in turning them on each other and unravels their hold on the city, formed the crux of the narrative. The film’s exploration of how and why Shiva came to be like a blood-thirsty hound, the shots of him wearing the blood-soaked footwear of his victims remained etched in the memories of everyone who’s seen the film. In fact, the scene of Raj, as Shiva, breaking into a rage filled tiger dance or rather tandava still induces goosebumps with every watch. And all of this against the musical brilliance of Midhun Mukundan. 

Earlier today, Paramvah Studios posted a video of all the love that came GGVV’s way after the release, with the caption, “Story of the fire that still burns bright,”. We couldn’t agree more with that post.

Garuda Gamana Vrishabha is available on Zee5 Kannada in Kannada only with English subtitles. Raj was hell-bent on not dubbing it in other languages or remaking it, as GGVV is a ‘rooted’ film.